Retail, grocery, and food service are still the first jobs most U.S. teens can land without experience. They hire in bunches. They train you on the shift. Those same openings sit on the job boards you'll use later for internships.
College students can add campus jobs and Handshake roles. Delivery gigs look flexible. Most of those apps will not take you until 18, and some states wait until 19.
The best first job is the one you can legally work, fit around class, and finish with a reference. Pay matters. So does a manager who will pick up the phone next year.
Which one should you chase first?
Age rules come before the job board
Federal law still decides a lot of this. Start with the U.S. Department of Labor youth employment pages. Your state can be stricter.
If you're 14 or 15, FLSA child labor rules limit both the tasks and the clock. Grocery bagging, many cashier jobs, and some host work are typical. You can't run most hot-oil cooking equipment. You can't drive for an employer. Hazardous warehouse work is out. School-year hours are capped. Summer hours loosen a bit, not all the way.
Neighbor babysitting and yard work still sit outside that formal hire path. They just won't show up on Indeed.
At 16 and 17 you get a wider retail and food set. Recreation jobs open up. Hazardous work stays off limits.
Thing is, a job app will still mix 18+ warehouse posts and gig cards into the same scroll as a mall cashier listing. The feed isn't your permission slip. Read the age line on the employer's career page before you build another account.
Some states and school districts still want a work permit. Ask your counselor. Don't wait until orientation.
First jobs that hire people with a blank resume
Use this as a filter, not a ranking. Pay and "best" change by city, and posted wages move with state minimums.
| Job type | Best for | Usual age floor | Where to apply |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail and grocery | Fast hire, after-school shifts | Often 16; some 14-15 roles | Store career pages, Indeed, Snagajob |
| Food service and cafes | Tips, same-week starts | Often 16 | Company sites, Indeed, in-store |
| Lifeguard and rec | Summer hours if you're certified | 15+ for many water jobs with a cert | City parks sites, YMCA, local rec boards |
| Campus jobs | Freshmen who need a walkable shift | Enrolled students | Handshake, school job portal |
| Warehouse and package handling | Higher posted hourly rates | Usually 18 | Employer career sites, Indeed |
| Delivery gigs | Control over when you log on | 18 in most states; 19 in some | DoorDash, Uber Eats, and similar apps |
Starter pay in retail and food usually sits near your state's minimum wage, with tips on top in restaurants. Open the live posting. A screenshot from last season is not an offer.
Retail and food service still get people hired
If you need a paycheck this month, apply here. Chains expect zero experience. They'll put you on a register, a floor set, or a headset and judge you on showing up.
The job is standing, and weekends go first. Customers can be sharp. You still leave with cash handling, a shift rhythm, and a manager's name. That's what the next form is asking for.
Apply on the company's careers page when it exists. Those forms dump into the retailer's ATS. Indeed and Snagajob are fine for finding the requisition. Don't submit three versions of the same store job with three emails. Parsers treat that as noise.
Independent shops still take walk-ins. Bring a one-page resume and your weekly availability. For a national chain, the walk-in is extra. The app is the gate.
Keep the resume plain. Your name, phone, school, and two activities beat a skills cloud. If you use a resume builder, export a simple PDF. Fancy columns break in Workday.
Lifeguarding is a summer job, not a year-round plan
Get certified before hiring season, then apply on parks and rec sites. DOL guidance sets 15 as the floor for lifeguarding at natural environments like lakes and ocean beaches when you're properly certified, and pool employers often follow a similar cert-plus-age pattern.
It's seasonal, weather-dependent, and useless if you wait until June to start the class.
Gig apps are a weak default for high schoolers
DoorDash and Uber Eats sell flexibility. Age cuts most teens out. DoorDash requires Dashers to be at least 18 in most states, and 19 in Texas and Florida.
You need a qualifying vehicle or bike setup, insurance, and a background check. Earnings swing with tips, time of day, and gas. Driver blogs publish hourly snapshots. Those are not a wage promise.
If you're 18+, already have a car, and want gaps between classes filled, delivery can work. It will not give you a supervisor reference. To be honest, a dining hall job is a cleaner first line on a resume.
Campus, warehouse, and the higher posted rate
Warehouse and overnight grocery roles sometimes post more per hour than a cafe. They're also physical. They're often 18+. The shifts can wreck morning classes. Check the live rate on the career site.
Campus work is the quieter win for college students. Libraries, rec centers, dining, and student IT desks hire people who can walk over between lectures. Handshake is where a lot of those listings live. Work-study can attach the job to your aid file.
If you already know you want something closer to tech later, a campus help desk is a nicer story than a year of delivery driving, but you still have to get hired, and help desks usually want you enrolled and free during the lab's peak hours, which is exactly when you also have class, so a weekend grocery job might be the thing that funds you while you wait for the September posting to open. That's a normal path. It isn't failure.
Internships and part-time jobs solve different problems. An internship is for exposure and a future full-time conversation. A part-time job is for rent, food, and proof you can keep a shift. Freshmen who need money should not skip paid work to chase an unpaid title. You can stack a short internship later.
How to apply when you have no experience
- Confirm the job is legal for your age. Use the DOL youth employment hub and your state labor site. The Young Worker Toolkit has hour-tracking tools worth using if you're 14-16.
- Pick two job types. Retail plus one backup is enough. Twelve simultaneous identities confuse you and the ATS.
- Write a one-page resume. School, sports, volunteer hours, and a short availability note. Dates aligned. No photo.
- Search Indeed for hourly part-time roles near you. If you're in college, turn on Handshake too. Snagajob still carries a lot of food and retail. Save searches by zip code.
- Click through to the employer career page and apply there. Keep a PDF copy.
- Use one email address everywhere. Same phone. Same dates if you already have babysitting or lawn work.
- Follow up once at local stores after you apply. One visit. Not five emails.
Job boards and apps that actually list first jobs
Turns out the useful app is the one your target employer reads. A barista job may exist only on the chain's site. A library desk job may never leave Handshake.
Use the boards to find the requisition, then finish the real form on the source site.
- Indeed for part-time retail, grocery, and food near your zip code
- Handshake for campus jobs and internships if you're enrolled
- Employer career pages for chains that force you through their ATS
- City and parks sites for seasonal lifeguard and rec posts
- Gig apps only after you meet the posted age and vehicle rules
A saved Indeed job is not an application. ATS software will parse your PDF. Use a standard heading and plain activity bullets. Don't keyword-stuff "customer service champion" into a babysitting gig.
Mistakes that stall a first-job search
Applying to 18+ gig posts when you're 16 wastes a whole evening of account creation.
Working so many hours that grades drop is a real failure mode. Federal and state caps exist for a reason.
Paying a service that promises interviews is optional theater. You don't need it.
Leaving availability blank loses you the Saturday hire. Managers pick the person who can work the shift they already have.
FAQ
What is the best first job for a high school student with no experience? Retail, grocery, or food service, if you're old enough for the role. Those are the listings that actually close.
Can I DoorDash in high school? Usually no. DoorDash sets 18 as the floor in most states and 19 in Texas and Florida.
Where should I apply first? The employer's career page, after you find the posting on Indeed, Handshake, or Snagajob.
Do I need a resume? Yes, even a short one. Blank forms look unfinished. One page is enough.
What about remote first jobs? True remote roles with no experience are scarce for minors. A lot of "work from home" ads are junk. Prefer local W-2 work for a first job.
Pick one job type that fits your age, check the DOL rules, and set two alerts tonight. Apply on the career page for the closest store or campus posting before the week ends.